LAS VEGAS (AP) — Seven people scammed by a business called Save Your House received restitution checks Wednesday, and Nevada Attorney General Catherine Cortez Masto offered their experience as a lesson for homeowners seeking to modify mortgages in the state hardest hit by foreclosures.

Masto said restitution for 12 victims was a condition of a plea deal that allowed the co-owners of the now-defunct Las Vegas company and one employee to avoid trial on felony charges. They pleaded guilty to misdemeanors and avoided jail time.